David Davis will be hoping the legislation passes through the Lords without any amendments

After the draft legislation was overwhelmingly backed by MPs in the House of Commons on Wednesday, the Brexit Secretary said he hoped there would be no more delays in allowing Theresa May to formally begin negotiations for Britain’s EU exit.

Speaking to Sky News, Mr Davis said: "I mean, the simple thing is the Lords is a very important institution.

Some Eurosceptic peers have already vowed to continue trying to amend the Bill after it comes to the House of Lords on February 20.

Government Loses Brexit Vote Appeal Tue, January 24, 2017

Britain's most senior judges ruled that Prime Minister Theresa May does not have the power to trigger the formal process Article 50 for the UK's exit from the European Union without Parliament having a say.

PA 1 of 12

Issued by the Supreme Court of (top row, from the left) Lord Neuberger, Lord Mance, Lord Kerr, Lord Sumption, (bottom row, from the left) Lady Hale, Lord Clarke, Lord Wilson and Lord Hodge, who agreed with the majority decision that the Government could not trigger Article 50 without Parliamentary approval.

I expect it to do its job and to do its patriotic duty and actually give us the right to go on and negotiate that new relationship [with the EU]

David Davis

Lord Hain, a Labour peer who has previously served as a Cabinet minister under Gordon Brown, said he planned to put forward two amendments to the Bill.

In a Newsnight interview, he told Evan Davis he wants to maintain the open border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, which he describes as “crucial to the peace process”, as well as keeping the UK’s membership of the single market.

Asked what he plans to do if his fellow peers refuse to back his amendments, he immediately responded: “I’ll vote against.

BBC

Lord Hain was accused of 'abusing his power' after vowing to vote against the Article 50 bill

“On principle and on conscience, I cannot support something that I think will damage the country."

Despite fears the Lords could still try to amend the Bill, leading Brexiteer Nigel Farage said: “I never thought I'd see the day where the House of Commons overwhelmingly voted for Britain to leave the European Union."